Kerry: I won't be intimidated by Israeli attacks against me

[Jefferson23]

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry responded decisively on Wednesday to dismissive comments made by top Israeli officials regarding his attempts to push forward the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.

"I'm not going to be intimidated and back down," Kerry said in an interview to CNN. "I’ve been attacked before by people using real bullets, not words... No one should distort what we are saying because they are opposed to the peace process."

Kerry was responding to a barrage of attacks issued by top Israeli officials - among them Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon and Economy Minister Naftali Bennett, who have in recent days painted his Mideast mission as messianic and obsessive.

"Unfortunately, there are some people in Israel and in Palestine […] who don’t support the peace process. There are specifically some people that don’t support two states. There are some people who don’t want any restraint on settlements whatsoever. What is important is to look at the positive side of this which is that the majority of people in Israel and Palestine believe in peace."

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/1.572705

[mylye2222]

1. And he's RIGHT!

RW attacks are ridiculous, and dishonest! It shows one thing: those poeple don't want peace process AT ALL. Their only goal is to revenge the former hatred Jews' history by transferring their victimness into tirrany against Palestinian poeple.

[Jefferson23]

2. As if they're going to be parting with any they care about: Lieberman:

Unity of people more important than unity of land

snip* "In the context of the American initiative," said Lieberman in an address to Commercial and Industrial Business Club in Tel Aviv, "there is a rhetoric battle for who is blunter, who is more litigious. Kerry is a true friend of Israel. I don't see what is wise about taking friends and turning them into enemies."



Lieberman added: "I support an agreement, but against being a sucker and we've had our share of being suckers in the past. Such as in the case of the (Gaza) Disengagement."

According to him, "the unity of the people is more important than the unity of the land." He further added that "Kerry is leading the process correctly. The negotiations are conducted with the Americans and the Palestinians are also conducting the talks with the Americans. We are now talking about the principles so that we could later directly negotiate with the Palestinians without any mediators."


Lieberman reiterated that he supports a land swap in the framework of a future agreement with the Palestinians. He also bluntly slammed the Arab-Israeli Knesset Members and said: "All those people who identify themselves with Hamas and Hezbollah , and I mean the Arab MKs, like Zahalka and Tibi who went to George Habash's funeral in Jordan. How can they sit in the Israeli Knesset and not even say one good word? I suggest they go to Syria and say something good about the leadership there."



The foreign minister harshly criticized the government's conduct, claiming that "the State of Israel is not running anything and only succumbing to pressure. The government acts like a board of directors with groups and struggles against one another. The coalition, as it is today, has nothing in common – not in the political field and not in the economic one."

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4485823,00.html

[LeftishBrit]

3. For a different Israeli perspective...

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=752930638051689&set=a.207185389292886.54305.198917210119704&type=1&theater